CARDIFF CITY chief Sam Hammam has come out fighting by declaring the debt-ridden club are back on track, on the up and up and ready to push for the Premiership again.

Hammam launched a forceful defence of his financial handling of the Bluebirds by insisting things were not as bad as had been portrayed.

And he declared he had a new 'dream team' in place in the shape of manager Dave Jones and chief executive Peter Ridsdale to wipe out the recent Ninian Park misery.

Hammam spoke out in typically no-nonsense fashion as he unveiled Jones and Ridsdale to the Welsh media and outlined where Cardiff had gone wrong and how they were to put it right.

Significantly, Hammam did not rule out further playing departures, heightening fears that star Wales defenders Danny Gabbidon and James Collins could be on their way out.

But he also stressed Jones would be given the go-ahead to bring in fresh faces as he reconstructs the failing squad Lennie Lawrence left behind.

"There are three major issues here," said Hammam.

"The first is that we have not managed our finances in the best possible way. They have not been up to scratch, to say the least.

"Because of that, we are losing millions of pounds per year.

"The second is that we were expecting the new stadium to have been given the go-ahead two years ago, so delays on that have not helped.

"The third is that we expected to do better on the football side."

In what could be portrayed as veiled criticism of previous manager Lawrence, Hammam continued, "Considering the amount of money we spent on transfers and the wages we are paying, things have left much to be desired there."

Hammam argued player wages were "massive, to be polite, and inflated, to put it another way."

He went on, "We have a reported #30m debt, which is the first problem we have to look at.

"Well, let's examine that figure. It is true we have that debt, but 90 per cent of it is due to loan notes like bonds which do not have to be paid back until January 1, 2012.

"Thus, there us NO danger to us. By issuing bonds to us, it shows commitment and confidence in us from the banks.

"Of the remaining 10 per cent of debt, three-quarters of that is owed to our directors. These are not due to be paid back until January 1, 2009. Again, we have no real problem there.

"Of the remaining percentage of the debt, most of that is owed to the Inland Revenue. We have an agreement with them to delay payment.

"So, of that #30m, we are talking in practical terms of around #1 million.

"That is not a big deal, certainly not in football terms. It is most certainly not crippling us.

"Then we move onto our next problem, which is the fact that we have got to stop losing money month-to-month in order to tackle that aforementioned debt.

"We need to control our monthly outgoings. We have to show the banks we have the financial prudence to do that. This is where the role of Peter Ridsdale is so important.

"He can use his expertise to help stem the losses, gain the confidence of the banks, stadium developers, the city, the local council. We need him to move forward and I'm absolutely delighted he has come on board to join our dream.

"We are very lucky to have someone of Peter's experience and stature within the football industry.

"Then we look at the next problem, which is the playing side and why we have brought Dave Jones in as manager.

"We have had two years in this division where we have finished 13th and 16th. This team is patently not good enough to take us that one step further.

"Therefore, we have to do something about it. We will shift major people out and get major people in.

"Yes, that means lots of players will go out and lots will be signed by us. Dave has a three-year deal and I'm confident we have a good manager and the right man to take us forward.

"In fact, I'm confident we have made the right decisions at the right time.

"As a result, this summer can go one of two ways. We will either be in a position where we have no option but to sell players.

"Or we will be in a position where we don't have to sell them.

"But whatever that position, major surgery is quite clearly needed to the playing squad and Dave will conduct that major surgery.

"I don't wish to talk about Lennie Lawrence. I wish to focus upon what Dave Jones can do for Cardiff City.

"But what I will say is that successive finishes of 13th and 16th clearly reflect the fact that we need total change. Heck, even the taxi driver who brought me here today told me that!

"Am I daunted by what is ahead? No, because the beauty of football is that when you have problems, you resolve them.

"We have problems, but they are problems we will overcome.

"This club will reach the Premiership. It will be many years from here, but the dream is still there.

"And having this new dream team on board will help and speed up that process. I have absolutely no doubts about that.

"We have come a fair way since I took over the club and, yes, we have problems at the moment.

"But after a period of restructuring, we will be in a position to move forward once more.

"Hopefully, in the not too distant future, we should be in a position to put our short-term problems behind us and move forward once more.